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Hi, I'm Nancy Dufresne. Welcome to our podcast channel. We know you'll be blessed by today's message. Welcome to Jesus the Healer. We're so glad you've joined with us today. We brought you to a different location. I'm not in the sanctuary, as you can see, but I'm at our ranch in Colorado and there's a couple of structures here and one of them is just a one room cabin that you see behind me that my son built for me that I can go to whenever we have company with us. And so I'm just glad to be able to bring you to this place. It's really special to us. So thank you for joining us. The last couple of episodes we've been teaching on the subject hold fast that faith not only receives from God, receives its answer, receives its manifestation, but faith also holds fast to what it receives. Know this, if the devil can't stop you from receiving your answer, then what he wants to do is steal it from you after you've received it. The devil is a thief. He comes to steal, he comes to kill and to destroy. And so many times people think wrong in the respect of they think that if they receive something from God, then it automatically will just remain theirs. But I know this, because there's a thief, the devil tries to seal it. So when we receive from God, just knowing this, we holding onto that is not automatic. We have to hold on to that by faith. And so we have to learn to hold fast. I want to read to you 1 Thessalonians, chapter 5 and verse 21, it reads this. Prove all things, hold fast that which is good. Notice we're to hold fast to what's good. Well, the Word tells us that all good and perfect gifts come down from the Father of Light. So we know that anything good that has come to our our life, God has been behind that. That it's a flow of God. And so anything that God gives it's good has to be held fast to because he's letting us know that the enemy will launch a counterattack against anything you've received to try to steal it from you. I remember in World War II that some of our soldiers were talking about a certain island that they had been able to take over. The enemy had held that ground and our soldiers had launched attacks to take that over. And so they took it over. And they said that every time they took it over, the enemy would launch an attack again. And they lost it and said they lost that ground 12 different times. Why was that? Well, because the enemy was not okay with them getting that ground. And so the enemies would launch an attack against them. And they launched an attack 12 different times. And finally, our members from the United States said that the last attack that we held the ground. So it took them 12 times before they learned how to hold the ground they took. Well, it's the same thing with faith. We have to not only be skillful at receiving from God, but we have to be skillful at holding fast that which we have received from God. Because holding fast to it is not automatic. We have to on purpose, hold fast to it. And God wants you to hold fast to everything he's blessed you with. I know that one time God said to me at a time that I was going through a testing, and he made this statement. He said, if you're going to believe everything the devil tells you, he'll steal from you everything I've ever blessed you with. So the devil is a thief. He wants to steal from you what you've received from God. We have to know this, that faith comes by hearing. So as we hear the word of God, as we hear the word of God taught, as we feed upon the word, faith comes once faith comes, we have to release our faith. Once we release our faith, we have to stand our ground of faith until our answer comes in a manifestation. But when our answer comes in a manifestation, we're not done. We still have to learn to hold fast to. To that which we've received. I want to read to you Hebrews, chapter three, verses five and six. It says, and Moses verily was faithful in all his house as a servant for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after. But Christ as a son over his own house, whose house we are, listen to this. If we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope, firm unto the end, so notice this. We have to hold fast our confidence and hold fast our rejoicing of the hope, firm to the end. One way that we hold fast to what God has blessed us with is through rejoicing. That as we rejoice and show gratitude and thanksgiving and give thanksgiving to God, that's one way that. That we are able to hold fast to what God's blessed us with. And the devil can't steal it from us. If we're not grateful. If we're not thankful for what God has blessed us with, then the devil can steal it from us. When we lose gratitude, our faith will break down. What we receive from God will break down in our lives. Because lack of Gratitude opens the door for the devil to steal from us. And so this passage in Hebrews 3, 6 says, we are to hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm. Listen to this. Unto the end. So that just means it's a lifestyle that the. Till the end of our days here on this earth, we are to hold fast to everything that we've received from God. And it's rejoicing is one way that helps us hold fast. If we're not holding fast, if we're seeing the things that God has blessed us with in the past diminish in our life if the business he gave us is diminishing, if the health he's given us is diminishing, if the provision he's given us is diminishing, we have to check and say, are we falling behind in our rejoicing? Are we falling behind in not holding fast? Because anytime something that God's blessed you with begins to diminish. And the remedy is, start holding fast. Release your faith, rejoicing over what God's already blessed you with. And refuse to let it be stolen from you. Now, I want to read you another passage in Hebrews chapter 4 and verse 14. It reads, Seeing then that we have a great high priest that is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our profession. So notice this, that he is our great high priest. He is the high priest of our confession. When he hears us make a confession as our high priest, he takes that to the Father. Our confession is taken to the Father. And power is dispatched, so to speak, on our behalf. Because our high priest brought our confession before the Father. I like what one minister said. One minister, in fact. His name is Norval Hayes. He's gone home to be with the Lord. But he was a man that had a strong ministry of healing and teaching on faith. And he says, because Jesus is the high priest of our profession or our confession. And he made this statement. He says, when you ask God and pray for something, that God turns to Jesus, who is the high priest of your confession, and says, how much have they confessed this now? Interesting, isn't it? If he's the high priest of our confession, God is interested in, are we confessing this? Are we making this a profession? Well, that's what holding fast is. We're confessing. I thank you, Father, that you have healed me. I thank you that you have blessed me with this business, with this home. And as you hold fast to that, then the enemy has no entrance or access to steal it from you. Then I want to read to you In Hebrews, chapter 10, verses 19 through 23. And it says this. Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which he hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, his flesh, and having an high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith. Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water, let us hold fast the profession of our faith. Listen to this. Without wavering. So we must. Anytime God has blessed us with something, or anytime we're believing God for something to come into manifestation, we have to hold fast to what we're saying. We have to hold fast to what we're believing to receive and to and also hold fast to what we've already received. But notice, he said, we have to hold fast without wavering. That means that when we say, thank you, Father, that you're working to manifest my answer in my life, that you don't go the next day and go, well, I'm not sure if it's going to happen. No. Every day your confession and profession has to be the exact same. You can't move forward, forward in your profession and then move back the next day. We have to hold fast without wavering. Now, one of the verses I want you to get hold of is found in Revelations, chapter 2 and verse 25, and it reads this way. But that which ye have already hold fast till I come. Now look at that. That which ye have already hold fast till I come. Now that could be looked at in two ways. And I think so much of the time we just look at it from one angle that we're saying, well, what we've already received, let us hold fast to it. What has already manifested, let us hold fast to it. If you've been believing for healing that manifested hold fast to it. You've been believing for provision that manifested, hold fast to it. Well, that's true that verse is saying this, but I want you to see on a greater scale what what it's referring to. That which ye have already now in Christ, we have already been blessed with every spiritual blessing, whether healing is manifested or not. Healing belongs to us. We have it. Whether provision is manifested or not, it belongs to us because Jesus provided it for us. Victory. Whether or not our circumstances changed or not, victory is already ours. We know this. At the new birth, Jesus made victory hours, healing hours, provision hours, wisdom hours, revelation hours. All these Things righteousness is ours. All these things he made ours at the new birth, they belong to us. That's how come they can manifest as we live our life, because they already belong to us. And so this is what the verse is talking about. We have to hold fast not just to what's already manifested, but what he made ours at the new birth, what he made ours at the new birth. We're to hold fast to that. And that's how the manifestation can come. We already have supply. We already have healing. We already have victory, and we are releasing our faith. So, and now, since we already have it, I call for it to come into manifestation. And so that's what really holding fast also implies. I want to read it, give you a testimony about something that happened in the life of my husband. Years ago, before we met and married, he pastored a church in Torrance, California. And they had acquired a building. And the building that they had was not properly zoned for a church. But God told them that that was their building. And so they purchased the church, and they had to go to a city meeting and see about getting the zoning change that would allow them to meet in that church as a congregation. And so my husband told the congregation, God told me that that's our building. So the congregation was thrilled about it. They bought the building, and then they had to go to a city council meeting. So the city notified all the surrounding properties and businesses that they were trying to get it rezoned to allow a church to meet in that building. And so when they went for the city council meeting, not just my husband went, who was the pastor of the church, but all the. He had encouraged as many of the congregation members to come as they. As many of them as they could. So they had been believing God for this zoning to be changed in their favor. And as my husband told him, he said, the Lord told me that it would be changed because he said, that's our building. So here in this small city council meeting room, my husband's congregation, much, many of them gathered in there. So they were packed in there real tight. And so they were discussing the other city business. And then finally they got to the point where they were discussing the issue about the church and about getting that building rezoned to allow a church to meet there. All the. All the time that the city meeting is going on, the congregation members that are present are real quietly. They're praying under their breath. They're praying in other tongues in the spirit, under their breath. So my husband said it sounded like a, you Know, some bees, they were just. You could just hear, like a beehive, like, you could just hear this underlying sound. And it was the sound of the congregation praying real quietly in other tongues for their own situation that was. That was fixing to happen. And when he's telling this, they have about eight different council members that have to vote. And so the. My husband told, you know, kind of stated their case and why they wanted this property rezoned. And then all the city council members would vote on it. And so as they voted on it, they were. They were split vote. Four voted for it and four voted against it. Excuse me, it was five that voted against it because it had gone down, you know. And so the head of the city meeting said, well, it was voted down, so, no, it won't be. The rezoning won't happen. The church is not allowed to meet in that building. So my husband stood there. You can imagine the whole congregation is behind him. It looks like what God said wasn't coming to pass, or it looks like my husband didn't hear God. Right. So you can imagine the feeling. You can't, you think all the blood leaving your head, you know, just sitting there, and your whole congregation is looking at you. And he said, all of a sudden, the congregation quit praying. He said that buzzing sound and then praying in the spirit stopped. And they're just now looking at him. And he said, everybody just stare there, you know, sitting there looking at him. He just doesn't know what to do. And he said he's having a conversation quietly, you know, between him and the Lord. He says, lord, what do I do now? And God said, just stand still. Just stand still. What's that mean? Don't give up. Don't let go with your faith. Don't go, oh, well, that's over, you know. And so all of a sudden. All of a sudden, the court recorder, you know, they had a person in there, and not a court, but in the. In the meeting hall, they had a. A recorder to where a lady was on. On a machine. She's typing in every piece of the conversation that's going on there as legal. You know, as legal things are being discussed. And she's typing in the votes of the different council members that had voted and how they cast their vote. And she said, all of a sudden, wait a minute. She said, my machine just jammed. We have to revote. And so. So Ed just stands there and waits for this process to happen. And they all begin stating again how they voted because she wasn't able to record it the first time. So they all go to restate their vote, and one man says, oh, just give it to them. I'll vote for them. And that one vote changed the whole thing. And my husband makes this statement. He says, I know an angel went in there and jammed his feet in that recording machine so that the boat had to be recounted. Well, I don't know if that's what happened, but I wouldn't be surprised if that is what happened. But notice this. As he was standing there, he had to hold fast so that he didn't slip out of faith. Because if he would have within him said, well, that's over, I guarantee you that one man would not have changed his mind. When it looks like things are going the wrong way, you have to hold fast. And I tell you what, you can hold fast because the word says that whenever you hold fast on the word, things will change for your benefit. And can I tell you this? If someone is not skillful at holding fast, they will be limiting themselves on how God can use them. I don't know about you, but every situation that I have faced just didn't go the right way the first time. I had to stand my ground and walk in faith and stand in faith and watch for situations to change. And they did. If I would just stand and hold my ground. And every believer has to become skillful not at just believing God and releasing faith, but at holding your ground. When it looks like things are going the wrong way. Think about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Think about them, these three Hebrew men that were carried off into captivity under King Nebuchadnezzar. And one day they've been trained under to serve alongside the king. They are a. They're leaders within Nebuchadnezzar's kingdom. And one day, King Nebuchadnezzar decides, I'm going to set up an image of myself and I'm going to have this nation to worship that image of me. So he gathered together all the leaders of his nation that day, and he told them and he instructed them, there's going to come the sound of music. And when. When there's a sound of music that plays, he says, every one of you are to bow down and worship this image. Well, because Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, they were Jewish men, they didn't bow to other gods. They bowed only to God himself. And so they knew that they weren't going to bow down, but yet they knew that there had been the threat that if you're not going to bow down. They'll throw you into the fiery furnace. So there came that sound of music playing. And all the other political leaders of that. Of that of King Nebuchadnezzar's realm, they bowed down to that image of King Nebuchadnezzar. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego just stood up. So you can see three men are standing, and everybody else is bowing. There's no hiding the stand you're taking. So there came the report to the king. These three men aren't bowing. So he calls for these three men to be brought before his throne. And he said this. He said, we're going to play the music again. And when that music plays, you're going to hit the ground and bow to this. And if you don't, I'm going to throw you into the fiery furnace. And Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, now they've got to learn to hold fast. And thankfully, they learned it before this day. They have to practice that. And they said, they made this statement. They said, king, we're not careful in our answer to you. What's. Whoa. That's. That's a powerful statement. They're just basically saying, we're not afraid to answer you. And they said, if you throw us into the fiery furnace, God will deliver us. But if not, if you don't throw us in, know this. We're still not bowing. Oh, what a statement. They had practiced. They knew that a life of faith is not just holding to what's right when everything looks like it's going well, but when it looks like it's going wrong, you still must hold fast. And so they were basically telling the king, if you throw us in, God will deliver us. But if not, if you don't throw us in. Notice this. They were bold to expect the king may change his word. Well, the king didn't change his word. He did throw them in. And notice, if you've ever read that passage, you'll find that what he did, the king was so infuriated at their answer to him that he said, heat the furnace seven times hotter. Well, you know, if there's a burning fiery furnace, why heat it seven times hotter? I tell you what, their stance was so bold that he doubted his furnace. He said, heat that thing up hotter. He wanted to make sure that his furnace could do the job. So he instructed, get some mighty men. Take these men, these three men, bind them up in their coats and bind them up. Why? With a lot of something that will Catch on fire real easily. They bound them up in these in lots of fabric. Now take them and throw them in the burning fiery furnace. When they got near the mouth of the furnace, the men, the soldiers, the mighty men of King Nebuchadnezzar that carried him there, the fire was so hot, it came out and burned them up even. Even just in proximity of the furnace. That's how hot it was. Now think of this. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are standing there, and they are supposedly being guarded by men who just got burned up. They're watching, and they have to make sure I don't sway in my faith. They're watching men burn alive, and this is really what they're being threatened with. But notice they didn't. They didn't sway. Holding fast means you set your sails and you don't change it. It means you hold to what you believe, no matter what circumstances look like. So they didn't back down when they saw the soldiers being burned up. Then, of course, they were thrown into the fiery furnace, and they didn't fall down. When the king looked in the fiery furnace, he said, I see four men loose. They're not bound anymore. They're loose and they're walking. And the form of the fourth is like the son of God. So notice this, because Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego held fast and did not change. Jesus showed up for them. When you hold fast, Jesus shows up for you. People who waver, people who back down, people who doubt the word of God, they're not going to receive the same faith. But people who hold fast, they will receive from God because Jesus will see to it. He is the high priest of your confession, the high priest of your profession. He will show up with his power. He'll make sure that you receive what you're believing for. Don't back down. That's what my husband and that congregation saw that day when they were in that city council meeting. My husband had the opportunity to cast his confidence aside, but he didn't cast it aside. I remember I was holding a prayer meeting, and some. A certain man had come into the prayer meeting, and I didn't know it, but he had just bought a new home. And God spoke to me and said, tell that man to make sure that he. That which he has received by faith, he's going to have to maintain by faith. Well, I didn't know what he was referring to. I didn't know that the had just bought a home. So I said to this man, I said, God just told me to tell you that that which you've received by faith, make sure that you keep your faith on it, because you're going to have to maintain it by faith. Well, he didn't understand what I meant. And within a few short months, the same house that he believed God for and God gave him, he ended up losing it. Why? Because he thought, well, I've got the house. It's mine now. Well, after you receive from God, you. You have to maintain that which you've received. And because he didn't keep his faith on it, he ended up losing it. God doesn't want us to lose anything. And you know this. Those of you who are homeowners or business owners, you know that it took faith for you to lay hold of that. But it also takes faith to keep that operating. So faith doesn't just receive from God. Faith delights in the opportunity to hold fast. And one of the best ways to hold fast is be ever grateful. Every day, say, father, thank you for all that you blessed me with. Thank you for my home. Thank you for my marriage. Thank you for my family. Thank you for my health. Thank you for my peace. Thank you for my joy. Thank you for my victory. As you do. The devil can't steal anything from you that God's blessed you with. We're so glad, so glad you've joined us today. We believe you've been helped. We believe you've been encouraged, that faith has come into your heart at the hearing of the Word. And we look forward to seeing you. Next time on Jesus the Healer. God bless you. We trust you've enjoyed this message. Visit us at defrainministries.org to learn of our upcoming meetings, share your testimony, become a partner, or visit our online store. This program has been made possible by the friends and partners of Dufresne Ministries.